Panchayat canvassing hits new low as Ramya-HDK fight turns personal

February 18, 2016

Mandya, Feb 18: The verbal spat between former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and former MP and actor Ramya has turned too personal with both hurling a torrent of abuses against each other.

ramyahdk

The mild verbal attacks and counter attacks between Ramya and MP C S Puttaraju during the first two days of the campaign for the ZP and TP polls turned serious, with Kumaraswamy reacting to her statements.

Both Ramya and Kumaraswamy began washing dirty linen in the public after the latter targeted Ramya’s entry into the district, claiming that it has led to the rise in farmer suicides.

During his campaign in the district recently, Kumaraswamy had alleged that more than 100 farmers ended their lives after the Congress came to power and Ramya stepped into the district. “Don’t get lured by the colourful speeches made by film stars,” he had told the people.

Reacting to it, Ramya had said, while HDK is a film producer, his wife Radhika and his son are also actors. How can he disrespect artistes?, she asked.

Ramya also told that Kumaraswamy wears a gold watch at home and ordinary watch in public.

Replying to this, Kumaraswamy said, he had not insulted artistes, but had particularly mentioned the name of Ramya.

“Has Ramya come to my home to see me wearing gold watch? Why does Ramya speak about Radhika? It is a personal matter. Let Ramya tell what she was doing in London? She should be careful while speaking about others’ personal lives, he had warned.

Speaking to mediapersons, here, Ramya said, the JD(S) had raised questions about her personal life, when she was actually mourning the death of her father.

“They continued their attack even after my victory. Now, Kumaraswamy’s statements about farmers’ death has hurt me deeply,” she said.

Ramya said, she had been to London to study. “Let Kumaraswamy explain why he frequents Sri Lanka? I have the answers and also know to speak,” she warned.

Ramya said, her life is like an open book and she is not involved in any wrongdoing. “I don’t fear anyone and speak only the truth. I have visited Radhika’s house and know that Kumaraswamy wears gold watch. You own Hummer, Audi and BMW cars, but speak about others’ watches, is it right? she questioned.

JD(S) has support only in Mandya district. Kumaraswamy is targeting me out of fear of losing the hold on the district, she said.

Comments

Kushwant Bhat
 - 
Thursday, 18 Feb 2016

Bap ray Master Blaster Kumaranna, did you forget you sat in a chair called Famous Karnataka State Chief Ministers, hope fully you have forgotten, Maharajanna please be calm, why are you showing the Habit of Our Great Cheater Yeddianna??? or Shobakka.
All political leaders are sailing same boat, you Bulls of the Criminals, you think you are serving the people, no never, you all Looters, cheaters and Goonda Criminals, once you are in the Position you are Barking like a Mad dog in the stage then starts your real Image. So do not show people that you are Great, Honest, Your Entire Family Looted Hindustan.
Please take rest Anna.
Jai Hind.
Jai Modiji.

saleem
 - 
Thursday, 18 Feb 2016

Whats wrong with this HDK, for me he is a stupid leader. He always wants him to be in the media. I doubt he must have a kind of media maniac that need to be counselled and treated. As we all know that he is the son of JDS supremo Devegowda, it doesnt mean that he by himself built this Gowda empire. People know HDK bcoz of his father, ever since he is in to the politics he wants to be in the picture by any means. this man has hell of money (source God knows). Recently he got messed with Siddu about expensive watch and with poor Ramya. He is a big womenizer that everybody knows. He is a shameless politician that in karnataka nobody likes him. It is safe for him to enjoy his lavish life bestowed by his fathers property. don't simply drag our new faces in to your nasty business. Ramya we love you and we support you, don't ever indulge such people into your business. Adopt ignore and proceed policy. Yours loving Fan.......

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News Network
April 21,2020

Kasaragod, Apr 21: Kerala reported a spike in COVID-19 cases on Tuesday with 19 people testing positive, after a decline in the numbers in the past few days, as the total infections touched 426 in the southern state.

Kannur recorded 10 cases, Palakkad four, Kasaragod three and Malappuram and Kollam one each, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters here.

The number of those getting infected were in single digits over the past few days.

Of the 10 positive cases from Kannur, nine of them had come from abroad and one had been infected through contact, he said.

Pointing out that the positive cases in Palakkad,Malappuram and Kollam had come from neighbouring Tamil Nadu, Vijayan said there is need to enforce strict vigilance in places bordering neighbouring states.

Sixteen people tested negative on Tuesday, while the total active cases 117, he added.

At least 32,000 people are under observation,

Of the around 20,000 samples sent, 19,440 had returned negative, Vijayan said.

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News Network
July 2,2020

Bengaluru, July 2: Congress leader and seven-time MLA D K Shivakumar today took charge as the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress committee in the presence of senior leaders of the party.

The formal was held at the KPCC office in Bengaluru. The ceremony is said to be a first of its kind in the country as 10 lakh people from the remotest corners of the state — 462 blocks and 6,000 gram panchayats and municipalities across 7,800 locations —witnessed it online.

Dinesh Gundu Rao , MLA, and immediate past president, handed over the party flag to Mr. Shivakumar. Senior leaders Siddaramaiah, Mallikarjun Kharge, and other MLAs and MLCs attended the programme.

AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal spoke on the occasion and lashed out at the Modi government for poor handling of economic and health issues in the country.

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Ram Puniyani
February 10,2020

Noam Chomsky is one of the leading peace workers in the world. In the wake of America’s attack on Vietnam, he brought out his classic formulation, ‘manufacturing consent’. The phrase explains the state manipulating public opinion to have the public approve of it policies—in this case, the attack of the American state on Vietnam, which was then struggling to free itself from French colonial rule.

In India, we are witness to manufactured hate against religious minorities. This hatred serves to enhance polarisation in society, which undermines India’s democracy and Constitution and promotes support for a Hindu nation. Hate is being manufactured through multiple mechanisms. For example, it manifests in violence against religious minorities. Some recent ghastly expressions of this manufactured hate was the massive communal violence witnessed in Mumbai (1992-93), Gujarat (2002), Kandhamal (2008) and Muzaffarnagar (2013). Its other manifestation was in the form of lynching of those accused of having killed a cow or consumed beef. A parallel phenomenon is the brutal flogging, often to death, of Dalits who deal with animal carcasses or leather.

Yet another form of this was seen when Shambhulal Regar, indoctrinated by the propaganda of Hindu nationalists, burned alive Afrazul Khan and shot the video of the heinous act. For his brutality, he was praised by many. Regar was incited into the act by the propaganda around love jihad. Lately, we have the same phenomenon of manufactured hate taking on even more dastardly proportions as youth related to Hindu nationalist organisations have been caught using pistols, while police authorities look on.

Anurag Thakur, a BJP minster in the central government recently incited a crowd in Delhi to complete his chant of what should happen to ‘traitors of the country...” with a “they should be shot”. Just two days later, a youth brought a pistol to the site of a protest at Jamia Millia Islamia university and shouted “take Azaadi!” and fired it. One bullet hit a student of Jamia. This happened on 30 January, the day Nathuram Godse had shot Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. A few days later, another youth fired near the site of protests against the CAA and NRC at Shaheen Bagh. Soon after, he said that in India, “only Hindus will rule”.

What is very obvious is that the shootings by those associated with Hindu nationalist organisations are the culmination of a long campaign of spreading hate against religious minorities in India in general and against Muslims in particular. The present phase is the outcome of a long and sustained hate campaign, the beginning of which lies in nationalism in the name of religion; Muslim nationalism and Hindu nationalism. This sectarian nationalism picked up the communal view of history and the communal historiography which the British introduced in order to pursue their ‘divide and rule’ policy.

In India what became part of “social common sense” was that Muslim kings had destroyed Hindu temples, that Islam was spread by force, and that it is a foreign religion, and so on. Campaigns, such as the one for a temple dedicated to the Hindu god Rama to be built at the site where the Babri masjid once stood, further deepened the idea of a Muslim as a “temple-destroyer”. Aurangzeb, Tipu Sultan and other Muslim kings were tarnished as the ones who spread Islam by force in the subcontinent. The tragic Partition, which was primarily due to British policies, and was well-supported by communal streams also, was entirely attributed to Muslims. The Kashmir conflict, which is the outcome of regional, ethnic and other historical issues, coupled with the American policy of supporting Pakistan’s ambitions of regional hegemony, (which also fostered the birth of Al-Qaeda), was also attributed to the Muslims.

With recurring incidents of communal violence, these falsehoods went on going deeper into the social thinking. Violence itself led to ghettoisation of Muslims and further broke inter-community social bonds. On the one hand, a ghettoised community is cut off from others and on the other hand the victims come to be presented as culprits. The percolation of this hate through word-of-mouth propaganda, media and re-writing of school curricula, had a strong impact on social attitudes towards the minorities.

In the last couple of decades, the process of manufacturing hate has been intensified by the social media platforms which are being cleverly used by the communal forces. Swati Chaturvedi’s book, I Am a Troll: Inside the Secret World of the BJP’s Digital Army, tells us how the BJP used social media to spread hate. Whatapp University became the source of understanding for large sections of society and hate for the ‘Other’, went up by leaps and bounds. To add on to this process, the phenomenon of fake news was shrewdly deployed to intensify divisiveness.

Currently, the Shaheen Bagh movement is a big uniting force for the country; but it is being demonised as a gathering of ‘anti-nationals’. Another BJP leader has said that these protesters will indulge in crimes like rape. This has intensified the prevalent hate.

While there is a general dominance of hate, the likes of Shambhulal Regar and the Jamia shooter do get taken in by the incitement and act out the violence that is constantly hinted at. The deeper issue involved is the prevalence of hate, misconceptions and biases, which have become the part of social thinking.

These misconceptions are undoing the amity between different religious communities which was built during the freedom movement. They are undoing the fraternity which emerged with the process of India as a nation in the making. The processes which brought these communities together broadly drew from Gandhi, Bhagat Singh and Ambedkar. It is these values which need to be rooted again in the society. The communal forces have resorted to false propaganda against the minorities, and that needs to be undone with sincerity.

Combating those foundational misconceptions which create hatred is a massive task which needs to be taken up by the social organisations and political parties which have faith in the Indian Constitution and values of freedom movement. It needs to be done right away as a priority issue in with a focus on cultivating Indian fraternity yet again.

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